Tower of Souls

Four days, sixteen hours, thirty-seven minutes, and twelve seconds; that's how long Cam hid in the crawl space, only scurrying out for brief trips to the bathroom...

Cam thought the first hour was the worst- at first. Just a few minutes after he hid himself away, the shouting began. He couldn't make out the words, but the anger in the voice was clear. Then, just a minute later, a second voice joined it.

Over the hour, more and more voices came and went- some just as angry sounding as the first, but others almost sounded genuinely concerned. At times, it seemed like the entire building vibrated from the number of feet stomping through it...

But the silence that followed... it ate at him. Not knowing what was said, what happened... what could even then be going on somewhere. Was Davis ok? What did he tell them? How long would they hold him, and how long would the investigation take?

His mind racing around in circles, Cam searched for something to distract himself... but all he had with him were some clothes, a backpack, his mother's necklace, and some T-Rations... and, with how worried he was, he didn't think he could eat...

And he had his Status page, but he had already read through all of it before... except his new Ability. But he felt guilty for even thinking about focusing on what he had gained while Davis was being held and possibly questioned...

But sitting there doing nothing but worry was quickly driving him mad...

With a sigh, Cam relented- Davis had told him not to worry and that he would handle it; he just needed to have faith in the Old Man...

With a hint of reluctance, Cam pulled up the Ability to read what it did.

Clone: "Great minds think alike... but fools seldom differ."

Active 1: Clone- Create a personal clone of yourself. The Clone possesses 75% of your Stats, all Abilities you have access to(except this one), appears completely identical, and is capable of independent thought. Clone does not have access to the Inventory. Armor and weapons are not duplicated, only basic clothing. Clone lasts until destroyed or subsumed.

Active 2: Subsume- Reintegrate the Clone, incorporating its memories and experiences with your own.

Cam was absolutely stunned by the ability; it was arguably one of the best he had ever heard of! He couldn't imagine how Cole had failed as a climber...

It was an almost perfect clone! Sure, it's Stats were reduced, and you would have to carry extra equipment for it to use- and take the time to equip it every time it was brought out... But even still, it was incredible! It was almost the equivalent of having an extra party member with a Class one Rarity lower!

And the ability to Subsume the clone, gaining it's memories and experiences... He could train and learn almost twice as fast! The Clone could scout and not even need to speak to explain what it saw. It had such incredible potential...

But what truly put it over the edge from being just a strong Ability to being absolutely incredible... It had no Mana cost, and no Cooldown.

It was Cole's Innate Ability.

Innate Abilities- the first Ability a Classer gained upon Awakening- were special. No one really understood why, but they were different from other Abilities... They were the foundation of a Class and, as such, often broke the rules that other Abilities seemed to follow.

Especially for Higher Rarity Classes.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

Which made the long Cooldown on his own Innate Ability make more sense. He had wondered about it, and now he understood: His own Ability was strong enough to take other people's Innate Abilities...

Of course, that required killing them... So, not exactly the best route for his growth- though it was an option, just not the most palatable. Cam didn't want to be a thug or a monster, after all...

Cam could only sigh; he had just Awakened and already gained another great Ability... and he couldn't test it out. There wasn't enough room in the tiny crawl space, and he didn't want to risk going out just to play around with it...

Shaking his head, he closed his Status window... and his eyes. After the day he had, he was exhausted. And, while he didn't think he could sleep with how worried he was, it was worth a shot.

Within seconds, he was out like a light.

Cam awoke with a start, his leg cramping from the awkward position he had sat in for... he didn't know how long- and it must have been a while for his leg to cramp. While Classers gradually grew further and further from such minor mundane problems as they leveled... he was still only Level 1, so something like a muscle cramp could still happen...

It just took a lot longer for it to set in, and faded a lot quicker... if he was willing to move.

Sitting in the dark with his leg cramped, Cam considered if it was worth it to leave the crawl space and take a look. On one hand, there was the risk; he didn't really know how big of a risk, just that it was there. But on the other hand, he had no idea what, if anything, was happening, or even how long it had been.

He was almost embarrassed when he finally figured out a solution to part of his problem...

Opening his Status once more, he quickly pulled up the description for Soul Harvest... and stared at the Cooldown.

6 Days, 11 Hours, 42 Minutes, 55 Seconds Remaining.

He watched as the second slowly ticked down for a moment before shaking his head and closing the window. He had used the Ability on Cole just before Davis smashed in the door, then spent an hour in the crawl space before falling asleep...

Had he really slept for eleven hours? Was he really that exhausted?

But the proof was right in front of him... and it kind of made sense. Yesterday wasn't just busy, it was hectic. The emotional rollercoaster of him being jumped by Cole, Markum's Awakening, his own Awakening, the conversation with Davis, then being surprised by Cole again... Topped off by having to fight and kill the bastard, then being hidden away while Davis tried to cover for him.

It was a lot; no wonder he was so tired.

Cam sighed when his stomach rumbled- apparently the worry wasn't enough to stave off his hunger, only sleep had managed to do that for a time... Grabbing a T-Ration, he bit into it- and froze as a new thought entered his mind.

He was a Classer now; and not just any Classer, but a Mythic. Regardless of whether he tried the crazy plan that was stewing in his mind, or joined some big group... He didn't have to worry about having to pinch and save every Bit that came his way from his stipend just to eat. One way or the other, he soon wouldn't have to worry about food ever again.

No more going to sleep hungry. No more starving for a few days, waiting for his next stipend because he was mugged...

The brief flash of joy he felt at the realization washed away as the reality of his situation set in once more. How could he think about food right now when Davis could be in trouble? Suddenly, he wasn't so hungry any more... but he forced himself to eat anyway.

Starving himself wouldn't change things... and, for all he knew, this could be his last meal...

"A pretty miserable last meal, if it is..." He grumbled around the tasteless ration.

If not for Soul Harvest's Cooldown steadily ticking away, Cam would have completely lost track of how much time had passed. With the exception of brief, nerve-wracking moments where he snuck out of his hiding place to use the bathroom, he basically didn't move at all. Doing his best to ignore the discomfort he felt, his mind wandered.

His Class, his dreams for the future and how he could accomplish it- though all of his plans were only vague and half formed, lacking information as he was...

And memories of his parents... They had been gone for so long, he struggled to remember their faces any more...

The sound of a door opening snapped him from his memories- he shouldn't have been able to hear it... unless it was the door to this apartment.

Someone was there.